The royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle captivated millions this past Saturday. Despite the early start time, the event was watched by 29.2 million viewers across six major networks in the U.S., according to Nielsen ratings. As for the U.K., 18 million royalists tuned in, with ratings expected to grow when Nielsen Media reports cable tallies.

Whether you are royal-obsessed or not, you have to admire the nearly flawless execution of the global media frenzy leading up to and during the royal wedding. It was a true spectacle made for live TV and choreographed perfectly every second of the way.

GroundFloor Media (GFM) and its sister agency, CenterTable, are proud to announce that their Get Grounded Foundation has awarded its latest round of grants to four outstanding local community programs supporting youth services.

Fall 2017 Get Grounded Foundation Grant Recipients

Child Advocates – CASA of Denver – The mission of Child Advocates – CASA of Denver (court-appointed special advocates) is to advocate for the best interests of abused and neglected children in Juvenile Court through the services of specially selected and trained community volunteers. These volunteers are the children’s representatives in court when there is suspicion of abuse or neglect. That said, only 35 percent of all cases have CASAs appointed to them. This grant will help change that statistic and funding will go toward the CASA of Denver Early Education Intervention Advocacy program.

Roots Elementary – Roots Elementary is a new school in Denver based on best practices from around the country with a radical new approach to time, talent and technology to create custom learning experiences for scholars. Roots puts students at the center of their education. Students are not batched by age or random assignment to a classroom, but rather flexibly grouped and regrouped throughout the day so they are always challenged but never overwhelmed. This increases the productivity of time spent at school and enables students to
rapidly build foundational knowledge and skills, freeing them to think critically, engage in collaborative projects and become creators, not just consumers of their world. This grantwill be used toward the Trauma-Informed Practice Program at Roots Elementary.

Denver Indian Family Resource Center (DIFRC) – Denver Indian Family Resource Center (DIFRC’s) mission is to strengthen vulnerable American Indian/Alaska Native children and families through collaborative and culturally-responsive services.DIFRC achieves this by providing family services and community programs to families who self-identify as AI/AN in the Denver metro area. Additi onally, DIFRC provides Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) advocacy to support reunification efforts for families who are involved in the child welfare system. DIFRC has established a revered reputation and demonstrated success in serving as a single point of entry for comprehensive, intensive and collaborative community-based services to vulnerable AI/AN children and their caregivers. The grant will be used toward the Culture Nights Program at DIFRC. The Culture Night program takes place each month and highlights a traditional art/craft project. Previous culture nights have featured holiday ornaments, dreamcatcher making and shawl making. Materials and light snacks are provided to support continued cultural knowledge and traditions. Children ages 6 and up can participate in craft making.

Playworks – Playworks expanded to Colorado in 2010 and serves low-income schools across Denver, Aurora and Mapleton through year-round, on-site support services. They are also reaching thousands more students across Colorado through professional development workshops for schools and youth organizations. In partnership with teachers, principals and parents, Playworks builds a culture of play that enables kids to feel a real sense of belonging and have the opportunity to contribute on the playground, in the classroom and into their communities. A randomized control trial found that compared to students at similar schools, Playworks students were more physically active, teachers reported that students had greater feelings of school safety and less bullying behavior was experienced. The grant will be used toward Playworks Coach and TeamUp program.

We are incredibly proud to support the above organizations and look forward to sharing the impact made by these grants throughout 2018.

A volunteer committee made up of individuals from the GroundFloor Media and CenterTable reviewed the fall 2017 round of grant applications.

We are excited to announce that our GroundFloor Media (GFM) and CenterTable family continues to grow thanks to the recent addition of Clare Frey.

Frey joins the CenterTable team as director of digital strategy. Prior to joining CenterTable, Frey’s experience included working as a web content manager for the University of Colorado, communications manager for Techstars and marketing communications manager at Inspirato. Prior to that, she contracted with various publishing companies. She is an excellent writer and has a deep understanding of how thoughtful social media and digital content can connect people to brands, and have a positive impact for both.

Originally from Poncha Springs, CO, Frey earned her bachelor’s degree in English from Fort Lewis College in Durango. After getting to know a few GFM team members over the years and stumbling upon CenterTable’s website last year, she has been eager to join our team.

In her spare time, Clare enjoys spending time with her husband and dachshund named Boris. She has a passion for animals and donates much of her time and money to animal welfare organizations and shelters. Colorado Horse Rescue is especially close to her heart. She is a self-proclaimed book-worm and is a huge fan of the mountains and getting outside. Clare’s favorite ice cream is pistachio and she can’t go a day without talking to her brother.

Her favorite quote is, “Ever since happiness heard your name, it has been running through the streets trying to find you.” – Hafiz of Persia

We are incredibly excited to welcome Clare to the GFM and CenterTable family. Her experience
across a variety of industries will be a great asset to our clients as we continue to create meaningful, creative and integrated marketing communications campaigns.

“It’s the most wonderful time of the year…” Or is it? Holiday cheer is no doubt contagious and everyone at work has an extra groove, but the holidays also usher in a bit of anxiety around the office work schedule. Who’s on vacation? What work has to get done before year’s end? What about budgets for 2018? How will you manage family time and providing extra care to clients?

For those like me, who are self-proclaimed “planners,” the holidays can also be a great time to reflect and prioritize projects. While you may not be able to avoid working late the nights leading up to the holiday break, there are a few things you can do to achieve work-life balance and combat stress during the holidays. Below are a few of my own suggestions:

Put in extra hours before the holiday to build a buffer & complete projectsAs I said, I am a planner and one tool I implement during the holiday season is scheduling ahead to add one extra hour of work to my day, each day leading up to the end of the year. If you are like me, this will allow you to get more work done and hopefully put you ahead of projects.

Determine “must-do” items versus “would like to do” items on your listPart of living a balanced professional and personal life is planning and setting clear expectations with team members. I generally have two lists of priorities. The first list is my general “to-dos” and the second list is my priority “to-dos” that I re-write each day. Making these lists of what has to get done, versus what can wait until the new year, helps keep me on track when last-minute projects arise. Prioritizing and thinking ahead helps me ensure I am creating the right deliverables. While it is almost certain you will have last-minute fires to put out, staying organized helps to keep these fires more manageable.

Give yourself time to mediate and reflectBetween holiday parties, gift shopping and prepping for family to arrive from out of town, it is easy to get caught up in this crazy time of year. That said, it also a great time to hit pause once a day and take time for yourself to reflect and recharge. Recently, I have been practicing meditation and using an app on my phone called Calmto guide me through my practice. The app offers tools to become more present and often provides perspective on the many things we can appreciate about each day.

While all of the above contribute to reducing stress around the holiday season, the most important thing to me is to stay present and enjoy this magical time of year.

Is there a silver bullet for building and improving workplace culture? According to a recent Gallup study, the answer to this question is a resounding yes.

So, what is the silver bullet you ask? Leaders. Gallup’s research shows that 70 percent of the variance among “lousy, good and great cultures can be found in the knowledge, skills and talent of the team leader.” A strong company culture is a unique identifier of an organization’s values, vision and goals. This requires a thoughtful approach from leadership along with a shared responsibility among employees to create a culture that embodies the company’s mission.

Luckily at GFM | CenterTable, we have Laura Love and Ramonna Robinson at the helm leading our team of expert, senior-level communications professionals. Laura and Ramonna have created a collaborative environment where people are encouraged, motivated and supported to provide clients with the best service possible. This collaborative atmosphere is one of the many reason why GFM has been named in the top five of OUTSIDE Magazine’s Best Places to Work of 2017 for the fifth consecutive year.

The magazine’s staff spends months carefully sifting through surveys and interviews from thousands of hopeful U.S. companies to identify the 100 companies highlighted on the list. Not only do the list-making companies provide great workplaces for employees, but they also encourage a balance between work and enjoying life in the great outdoors. Additionally, the companies respect the environment in how they conduct business and in their production practices.

GFM is proud to have been recognized for a wide variety of non-traditional benefits that cultivate a true “work-life” blend. That said, it is important to note that our culture is very much a result of our leaders’ efforts to lead by example and celebrate each team member’s unique skill sets and interests.

Laura and Ramonna recently wrote an article for Colorado Biz which highlights the five guiding principles that GFM lives by every day. In the article they say, “It is up to the leaders of an organization to set the tone and ensure a strong culture, but that intention only goes so far. A company’s culture is a true amalgamation of the people who work there, and their values and inspirations. The best thing leaders can do is lead by example and let team members take it from there.”

The foundation seeds funding for new or expanded, innovative or entrepreneurial programs or projects within an existing, qualified nonprofit that directly supports the healthy development of at-risk youth between the ages of three and 13 in the Denver Metro area.

In addition to the Get Grounded Foundation, GroundFloor Media encourages employees to actively participate in community service to make a difference through their own charities.

Throughout my career, I’ve found that companies who encourage community involvement separate themselves from their competitors, develop more loyal customers and enhance employee happiness. Participating in community service not only makes a difference to the organizations and people being served, but also makes a difference in your own personal life. Participating in community service activities helps to enhance social awareness and responsibility, while building community relationships.

As a new member of the GroundFloor Media team and as a Colorado native, it is incredibly impactful to know I am working for a company that is committed to making a difference in the Denver community.

Sister agencies GroundFloor Media (GFM) and CenterTable navigate the blurred lines between marketing, public relations and advertising – online and off. The GFM team creates and manages messages from inception through an intermediary to the end consumer, while the CenterTable team creates messages that engage directly with the end consumer. Both agencies work with a wide range of clients – from food & beverage to health & wellness to technology & telecomm – who consistently offer us innovative and creative opportunities to reach new audiences. We developed this blog to share our experiences, advice and industry commentary with other communicators. We hope you enjoy it!